I had to DOR...

Today after the first NROTC orientation meeting I thought about how my parents would take it. It was only then I realized how badly affected they are by stress. I also realized that their stress and negative feelings towards me would also cause me stress every time I would put on a uniform or walk into a Naval class. Unnecessary stress can lead to so many severe health problems that I thought it would be best for my parents if I did not pursue my dream of being in the military.

Don't get me wrong, there's nothing else I'd rather be than a Marine right now. But I believe the health of our parents and loved ones should not be sacrificed for any of our desires. It's one thing for them to disagree, but to let my mother cry every night for the next 14 years (6 college and 8 minimum military obligation) is something I cannot live with.


Edited by Tolgak - 05 September 2006 at 12:37pm

It appears you are SOL, sir.

Toldgak: Before you make any decision it sounds like you need to find out exactly what the scholorship has to offer. While GThomas seems to have had minimal luck with the Army, my son got the Navy to pay full tuition and a stipend while he's going to school and one of my friends son's ended up with an Army scholorship that seems to fall someplace in between these two extremes. I think if you do a little research you may find there are numerous options to consider. With that said, while I won't tell you what I think you should decide, I will tell you the process I think you should use if you have the time.

• Find out exactly what the Navy will do for you.
• Remember (as GT pointed out) that you can join ROTC non-contracted, but there are disadvantages to this
• You do all the ROTC stuff, but get minimal assistance from the military for school
• You still have to decide if you want to make a military committment by your third year
• You will definitely piss of your parents
• Consider that if you take a scholorship from the military that once you attend your first day of your second year you belong to them no matter what: If you don't make it through the program as an officer you will owe them enlisted time.  (I know for sure the Army and Navy work this way, I'm assuming the AF does as well.
• Do you really want to do a military career?
• Weigh that desire against the need to not alienate your parents
• Keep in mind your time in the military could be very trying if you don't really want to be there.

You're an adult, you're free to make your own decisions, but there will always be people throughout your life who will try to influence those decisions.  Those people will have a varying degree of control over you which will affect the success they have in getting you to act how they want.  It can vary from parents who "cut you off" for joining the Marines, to bosses who threaten to fire you for being late, or even (possibly) a commander who could put you in the brig for failing to follow orders. Remember that the decision is still ultimately yours after you weigh the risks and rewards.

When I enlisted in the AF, my parents were not happy and tried to talk me out of it.  They kept trying during my first few years in.  They eventually got over it and I spent a little over 23 years doing stuff that I enjoyed.

Savior_6: So your stationed at Malmstrom? I retired out of there. If you've ever been out to the Awesome Paintball field near Simms, we've probably traded paint.

Kristofer wrote: But I think in the summers you may have to do some training.

And that's when they'll find out. Then they'll pull the classic "Why didn't you tell us earlier?"

As for the scholarships. I've talked to tons of ROTC kids and they all say that if I can keep a 3.0 this semester, then my scholarship can start in the spring of this year.

Thanks a lot for your help but I still need to know how I'm going to present this to my parents. I really want to tell them early so they wont be hit with the news long after I'm in it.

As for the training in the summer you have a few different options. If you start with ROTC classes  the first semester you are at school, then you would not have to do any summer training untill the summer between your junior and senior year and thats after you contract. If you join ROTC later in college then you will have to train during the summer ussually between sophmore and junior year  to make up for the classes you missed. Basically there are 2 camps one is a basic camp that is 5 weeks long and that is for kids who joined later in college. The basic camp is basically the first 4 semesters of ROTC compacted into a 4-5 week camp. The second camp which all cadets attend after they contract is an advanced camp that tests you on everything you have learned in ROTC. Now this is what it is for the Army and I assume that its the same for the Marines. Also we have the choice of going to professional schools, Air Assualt school, Airborne school, Northern Warfare school in Alaska, Mountain Warfare school in Vermont, etc. But you have to be contracted to attend any of the camps.

As Mack stated apperently NROTC does offer full scholarships. I have a 3.86 GPA, and the Army offered me a $7,000 scholarship, when it costs me close to $30,000 to go to school. That amount of money was not even close to an incentive for me to contract. So look into how much you could get on scholarship. That scholarship offer will always be there as long as you keep your grades up. The second you take the scholarship is the second you contract.
 

Edited by GThomas - 02 September 2006 at 11:51am

Its the marines... they pay you, you'll be fine. Tell ol' mom and dad to shove it, if its really what you want to do.

This is a response I put in the Tinker's Guild about why I want to do it.


It's not about rebellion from my parents, being unsure about my life, or wanting to kill people.

What I want is a challenge. I want to do something few people can say they have done. Being a Marine is something I would take a lot of pride in and it would really boost my self-esteem.

Besides that, having an Aerospace Engineering degree and being a pilot for the Marines and graduating out of the school I'm going to will open up tons of opportunites for me when I am discharged later on. I checked on some sites and apparently some military branches offer training for starting small businesses. So having the training of all three (flying, engineering, business) plus my desire to succeed in life could have me starting some sort of business when I get out that involves for example, designing aircraft.


I didn't say this in the guild but it would also be a good feeling as a pilot knowing that you fly (in the current conflict) to protect the people on the ground. And helping preserving the lives of our troops is also something I would love to do.


Edited by Tolgak - 02 September 2006 at 3:07pm

Tolgak wrote: This is a response I put in the Tinker's Guild about why I want to do it. It's not about rebellion from my parents, being unsure about my life, or wanting to kill people. What I want is a challenge. I want to do something few people can say they have done. Being a Marine is something I would take a lot of pride in and it would really boost my self-esteem. Besides that, having an Aerospace Engineering degree and being a pilot for the Marines and graduating out of the school I'm going to will open up tons of opportunites for me when I am discharged later on. I checked on some sites and apparently some military branches offer training for starting small businesses. So having the training of all three (flying, engineering, business) plus my desire to succeed in life could have me starting some sort of business when I get out that involves for example, designing aircraft. I didn't say this in the guild but it would also be a good feeling as a pilot knowing that you fly (in the current conflict) to protect the people on the ground. And helping preserving the lives of our troops is also something I would love to do.

It sounds like you've put a lot of thought into this.  You explained your reasons well and they make sense. Now all you have to do is reach a decision.

Mack wrote: Tolgak wrote: Do you think the best option is to go non-contractually and wait until I'm eligable for full scholarship to contract? Besides annoying your parents, adding extra school work, and the opportunity to enjoy morning pt, what would you get from doing this. (Books, tuition assistance, a stipend, etc?)Of course if you just really want to be a Marine, go for it. Hooah!**Also spelled/pronounced huah, hoohah, hooahh, etc.

hooah is army...

Marines is oooooh-rah.

All I have to say is, If you do go through with the Marines, your parents should be cool with it. If you do sign up just say something along the lines of "This is what I want to do, If you cant accept me for who I am and what I want to do, then so be it." And you could also add in that they are disowning you over something like this. Its not like you are doing anything bad or anything.

They're probably just afraid that you are going to be sent to Iraq and die.